21-member NWFP cabinet sworn in

A 21-member cabinet of NWFP on Wednesday took oath of their offices in a ceremony held here at Governor’s House here. NWFP Governor Owais Ahmad Ghani administered the oath. The 21-member cabinet has 12 ministers from the Awami National Party (ANP) and nine from the Pakistan Peoples Party-Parliamentarians. The ministers from the ANP are: Bashir Ahmad Bilour (Local Government and Rural Development), Mohammad Ayub (Science and Technology), Wajid Ali Khan (Forest), Mian Iftikhar Hussein (Education), Syed Aqil Shah (Sports and Culture), Mian Nisar Gul (Prisons), Nimroz Khan (Haj and Religious Affairs), Zarshid Khan (Zakat, Ushr), Sardar Hussein Babak (Information), Barrister Arshad Abdullah (Law and Parliamentary Affairs) and Sitara Imran (Women Welfare).The representatives of the PPP in the cabinet are: Rahimdad Khan, Syed Zahir Ali Shah, Mohammad Hamayun Khan, Liquat Shabab, Saleem Khan, Mohammad Shuja Salim Khan, Ahmad Hussein Shah and Mehmood Zeb Khan. The PPP has not announced the portfolios of the ministers of its quota. However, they are likely to get the portfolios of the Planning and Development; Health; Irrigation and Power; Excise and Taxation; Population Welfare; Food; Industries and Revenue respectively. Both Bashir Ahmad Bilour of ANP and Rahimdad Khan of PPP would also be senior ministers in the cabinet. Beside elected public representatives of both the coalition partners, ANP, PPP and PML-Q, the oath taking ceremony was attended by provincial president of ANP Afrasiab Khan Khattak, Federal Minister for Local Government and Local Development Haji Ghulam Ahmad Bilour. But, interestingly, the PML-N, MPAs and senior leaderships were missing from the ceremony. The junior coalition partner has reportedly developed differences with the leadership of ANP over the proposed cabinet portfolios for the party members. Peshawar, the provincial metropolis has got the largest representation on the cabinet having four provincial ministers, besides the Speaker and Deputy Speaker, who also hails from the rural constituencies of the City District.
Mansehra is the second district whose three members got berth on the cabinet, followed by Nowshera, Swabi and Swat. The other districts included are Malakand, Karak, Dir Lower, Bunner, Bannu and Charsadda, which got one each seat in the cabinet.
NWFP, comprising 24 districts, but only 13 districts had got representation on the cabinet, while the remaining 11 districts were not given share in the government setup.These districts are Abbottabad, Haripur, D.I. Khan, Tank, Hangu, Kohat, Dir Upper, Shangla, Kohistan, Lakki and Batgram.